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Updated: Jun 3, 2026

Working Memory Training for Older Participants: A Control Group Training Regimen and Initial Intellectual Functioning Assessment
Published on: September 20, 2020
Betting on memory leads to metacognitive improvement by younger and older adults
Shannon McGillivray1, Alan D Castel
1Department of Psychology,University of California, Los Angeles, CA 90095-1563, USA. smcgillivray@ucla.edu
Abstract:
The present study examined how younger and older adults choose to selectively remember important information. Participants studied words paired with point values, and "bet" on whether they could later recall each word. If they bet on and recalled the word, they received the points, but if they failed to recall it, they lost those points. Participants (especially older adults) initially bet on more words than they later recalled, but greatly improved with task experience. The incorporation of rewards and penalties associated with metacognitive predictions, and multiple study-test trials, revealed that both younger and older adults can learn to maximize performance.
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